


Just a Kiss

by ElizabethWilde



Category: A Knight's Tale (2001)
Genre: Humor, M/M, Romance, Smut, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2004-12-23
Updated: 2004-12-23
Packaged: 2017-11-21 11:40:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/597315
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElizabethWilde/pseuds/ElizabethWilde
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He knew it was a stupid bet.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Just a Kiss

**Author's Note:**

> Written in response to the challenge by tally cola. I've wanted to write a Knight's Tale slashy thing for a long time, but I never could find just the right way until your challenge. Go girl!

Geoff watched quietly as William moved among the revelers. He talked, danced, toasted the fortune of a newly-engaged couple, and lingered alone in a corner with a rather striking brunette beauty. The young man looked almost like a woman, actually, though Geoff knew well that no one flirting so hard with a male was looking for female companionship. The dark-haired beauty smiled warmly at William, fluttering too-long lashes. //And wouldn't his lady love to meet his lord? Jocelyn won't be filling his thoughts this night.// It was not William on whom his attention lingered, however, but rather his fiery-haired friend. Roland's drunken dare still lingered in his mind.

"I'll bet even you couldn't talk Wat between the sheets!" he'd crowed when Geoff boasted of his seductive genius.

Pride on the line, the writer scoffed, "You are mistaken, my friend. If I wished it, I could bed him anytime."

"Then doing it before the next tournament should be no trouble at all."

"And why should I do that?"

"You can't, but if God guides you into more luck than you deserve, you'll get half my share of the next pot," Roland promised with a satisfied smirk.

The moment they shook on it, Geoff began wondering why he'd ever made such a wager. So far as he knew, Wat didn't have any romantic interest in anyone, let alone in men. //At least it's your pride and not your pocketbook that will suffer if you fail.//

And so he stood in the shadows of the tent and watched Wat drinking alone in the corner. Geoff noticed early on the way Wat's eyes followed Will's every move. //Friendly devotion, or is there more hope in this venture than I thought?// On a whim, he moved across the room and sat just a hair too close for friendly conversation. Casually, Geoff nodded to the lovely creature whispering in Will's ear. "Not bad. Quite nice, actually.”

"Not my type," Wat returned in an oddly flat tone.

Unable to read his friend's voice or expression, Geoff leaned in just a bit closer, lips almost against Wat's ear. "Prefer blonds, do you?"

Wat's reaction might have been funny had he not seemed so genuinely out of sorts. He half rose and half fell from his chair and stumbled to his feet. "I… uh… tired. 'Night," the young man stammered before hastily retreating from the party.

As his eyes followed the redhead, Geoff's gaze fell on Roland, who shook his head sadly. "Not giving up that easily," he muttered to himself before smiling grimly and raising his drink to the other man.

********************

That night Geoff returned to their tent to find William missing. //Thought he might've found himself a partner for the night.// Exhausted from the drunken celebration of the party, Geoff found an empty corner of the tent and lay down. Hazy near-sleep overcame him almost at once. 

Sounds coming from the next tent over brought him into a groggy sort of consciousness after only a few moments. Will's voice pleading breathlessly for release carried through the night air followed by the harsh grunts of his partner. Geoff sighed, realizing his body's rather obvious reaction in sleep to the stimulus. One hand reached lazily down into his pants to close around the throbbing length between his legs. The sound of harsh breathing much closer than the next tent halted movement momentarily. //Wat.// Clearly the panting breath belonged to his red-haired companion, and it took no more than a glance to confirm the suspicion. Wat's hand moved eagerly beneath a thin blanket, jaw clenched as his passion grew.

As he watched, a wicked idea grew in Geoff's mind. He stroked himself faster to meet Wat's pace and then groaned. He heard sudden stillness from Wat but continued on. Soon the sound of labored breathing from both men filled the tent. Though barely able to see in the murky light, Geoff kept his gaze on Wat. He noted every movement the other man made and finally watched as Wat's back arched and his head fall back. No sound escaped the man's open mouth, but the idea of turning the silence into a ragged cry of pleasure brought the last bit of excitement needed to bring Geoff's release. Heat burned through his body, and for a brief, intoxicating moment the writer imagined Wat's hand wrapped around his pulsing cock. Geoff shuddered in the aftermath of his release, thankful for the second pair of pants he now owned. //I should have rather a hard time explaining otherwise.// As sleep overcame Geoff once more, he became aware of Wat's gaze lingering on his body and smiled.

********************

The next day--indeed for the next several days of walking--Wat barely spoke to anyone. Never once did he threaten to kill or maim anyone, and Will pestered the young man with questions about his health. "For the hundredth time, I'm fine!" Wat snapped at last. "Just… having trouble sleeping is all," he mumbled while pointedly keeping his eyes off of Geoff.

"You've barely spoken," Geoff pointed out as they settled into camp. The thought that one night remained before the next tournament failed the man entirely. He had become focused on the quarry instead of the hunt. When Wat failed to answer, Geoff reached for his arm and gripped it firmly. "At the very least talk to me. What happened the other night-"

"Nothing happened," Wat muttered after a half-hearted attempt to jerk his arm away.

"Dammit, Wat!" Geoff hissed. Seeing no one nearby, he pulled the other man into the tent with him. "You needn't pretend that I'm the only one who was there. I…" For the first time in a long while, words almost failed. "Perhaps your thoughts were only with Will, but mine were entirely on you." The hand holding onto Wat's arm fell away and Geoff reached hesitantly up to stroke his stubbled cheek. "Hit me if you like, but for God's sake let me kiss you once first." Ignoring the scandalized look on Wat's face, he leaned in and pressed their lips firmly together. Wat tasted oddly sweet considering the jerky which had been their lunch. He lingered, savoring without pushing too far. Finally the pressure of Wat's hands pushing gently against his chest brought Geoff back to a certain alertness of reality.

Geoff opened his eyes slowly as he relented to the insistent pressure. Silently pleading for understanding, his hands remained braced against Wat's shoulders. "Was it really so awful?"

Wat stared blankly for a few minutes before whispering, "No." Cheeks flushed and blue eyes slightly darkened, the man shifted. "Do you really… that is, do you think about me like that? Honestly?"

"I've thought of no one else." Caught up though he was in the moment, a nagging bit of guilt surfaced when he thought of the bet that had brought them together. "It… at first it was a bet. No!" He held fast to Wat's shirt. "I was drinking with Roland. We'd both had a few too many, and it sounded innocent enough. After… well, after I started thinking about it, I realized that it was stupid, but I still wanted you. *That* is why I kept up the chase. I want you. I want to know what it's like to be the one who brings you pleasure and happiness. Wat, please!" Already the other man had pulled away and exited the tent.  
"Damn it!" //That's what you get for being honest.//

********************

Geoff remained carefully out of the way until the close of the first day's games. "Do you know what the bet was?" he pressed while helping Wat clean up the horse that evening. Receiving only a glare in answer, Geoff continued, "I was charged to get you in bed before the start of this tournament. Do you want to know something else? I don't care! The bet never mattered. The only thing that really matters is you. I've hurt you, and I hate it. I'll do anything you like if it means you'll speak to me again. For heaven's sake, say *something*!"

"Why?" Glaring daggers at the blond writer, Wat drew himself up to full height. "You've made this mess. I don't see why I should have to clean it up for you. You've lost your bet, so let me alone."

Frustrated to the point of anger, Geoff threw the horse brush aside and strode over to stand next to the other man. "Sod the bet! Haven't you heard a word of what I've said?" Geoff grabbed hold of Wat's hand and felt a flash of surprise when it curled into a fist and slammed hard into his left eye. Before he managed to recover, he'd been shoved onto his backside in the hay. Rather half-hearted blows rained down from the man straddling his hips, bruising and stinging but causing no real damage. When the hitting stopped and his eyes opened, Geoff felt his breath catch. Wat was crying. An even greater shock came when the redhead pulled him into a possessive hug.

"Damn you for making this… it didn't have to be so hard!" he sobbed into Geoff's ear. "I wouldn't've given it a second thought and everything could've been so easy!" 

"Never did like to do things the easy way." After taking a slow, steadying breath, Geoff drew back to look into Wat's tear-stained face. "So it does mean something, then? Hate to think you're sitting on my lap for no good reason."

Wat looked taken aback briefly and then ventured, "And if I am?" 

"Then I wouldn't be much of a gentleman if I didn't oblige." Despite the nagging sting of his bruised skin, Geoff used one hand to draw the other man’s face closer. “Shall I?”

Apparently at a loss to find something to saw, Wat settled on nodding rather eagerly. His hands gripped the other man’s shoulders as if steadying them both, and his blue eyes were slightly wide. 

“Shhh,” Geoff whispered soothingly. “Nothing to worry about. I wouldn’t hurt you. Well, not in a bad way certainly.” He flashed Wat a roguish grin and then drew him into another kiss. It was softer and without the urgency of their previous embrace. At least, it was until Wat whimpered and took a real hold of Geoff’s body to draw him closer. “Here… here, this won’t do,” the writer protested. He ushered Wat off of his lap and then rolled over on top of him. “There. Now we’re close and I’m not breaking my back for it.”

Looking a bit less nervous and a great deal more needy, Wat nodded once and reached for the back of Geoff’s head to tug him down again. “If you’re going to be on top, it’s only fair to come down and visit.”

“Seems that way, yes.” Laughing, he kissed Wat soundly before shifting his hips. “Hmmm… and what is this? Excited already? Didn’t know I was that entertaining. Well, yes I did, but I suppose I hadn’t dared hope you might come ‘round to my way of thinking quite so easily.”

“Well, I did. Now shut the hell up and do something about it,” Wat demanded impatiently. “You talk too much.”

“That I do.” Deciding on the path of least resistance, Geoff chose simply to open both their pants, leaving only their most intimate parts exposed. “It isn’t the most romantic thing,” he explained as he took both their straining lengths in hand, “but I think we need satisfaction before we’re quite in the right place to find romance.” He took the grunt of response from Wat as an affirmative and began to stroke more firmly. Soon Geoff resorted to the less-than-satisfactory but more-than-necessary lubricating properties of spit to help with the process. He cared little for perfection in form when even the rough approximation was making Wat pant and throw his head back in a wonderfully attractive fashion. 

Geoff kissed the other man’s bared neck and smiled. It faded as concentration took over, the movements of his hand becoming more urgent. “Are… are you-“

“Close,” Wat affirmed in a breathless whisper.

“Good.” For once, Geoff fell silent. He focused entirely on stroking, on watching, on hearing every slight, tiny sound of pleasure from his new lover. From the panting coming from the man beneath him and the slight tensing of Wat’s muscles, Geoff felt the redhead’s climax coming moments before it broke. He let himself go at almost the same instant, and they groaned their release almost as one. Gasps calmed to pants and then to slow, even breathing, and Geoff finally let himself fall off to one side. “That-“

“-was brilliant.”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah.” 

Geoff looked over to see Wat smiling as if pleased with himself. “And what are you looking so smug about, hmm?”

“Y’know, I don’t think you ever would’ve taken notice at all if it wasn’t for that bloody bet. You and your gambling…”

The blond’s brows furrowed briefly. “Surely you didn’t… Why would you have been so upset if…”

“Well, I can’t say I wouldn’t have preferred you figuring things out on your own. It was frustrating. And you didn’t even think to tell me! Had to wait until the last minute! Much as you talk, I would’ve figured it’ve tumbled out of you at some point.” Wat shook his head and sighed. 

“You! You-“ Geoff sputtered. “I can’t believe you! You put Roland up to-“

“Well, I had to get your attention somehow. You’re dense as anything.”

The writer’s eyes widened. “You’re brilliant. You’re an absolute evil genius.”

Wat just smiled. “Flattery will get you nowhere. Little more of what you just did might be a decent start on the trip, though.”


End file.
